Now commercially available as part of the Marathon series of labelers, the GES 2.0 is the first high-performance glue application alternative to traditional glue wheel systems. It is a breakthrough innovation that is changing the way adhesives are applied to roll-fed labels.

The B & H GES 2.0 applies a precisely extruded film of hot melt adhesive to preprogramed locations on a label through a vertical pattern nozzle. Using proprietary algorithms developed by B & H, the fully automatic system uses a controlled combination of pressure and temperature to accurately and consistently extrude and apply hot melt adhesive to labels regardless of production speed.

GES 2.0-applied glue patterns are void-free, which improves the bonding performance of any adhesive. The system offers precise, consistent control over the amount of adhesive applied to a label, the position of the adhesive pattern on a label and the size of the leading and trailing edge glue patterns.

The fully automatic GES 2.0 virtually eliminates the need for labeler operators to set-up and adjust the system during operation. This reduces downtime related to glue application and reduces the need to train operators to troubleshoot and then adjust the glue application system.

“We installed the first Marathon XLUA + GES labeler at a large carbonated soft drink bottling plant in February 2014. Since then, this GES-equipped Marathon labeler has labeled full bottles 24 hours a day, six or seven days a week on a line that handles 14 different bottles at very high speeds. In all that time, the labeler operators never made an adjustment to the glue application system. There is simply nothing to adjust on the GES – it’s fully automatic,” said Rory Kelly, Director of Engineering at B & H.

“The Marathon XLUA + GES labeler increased the bottler’s operating efficiencies on this line by 10 percent at the same time their speed increased 30 to 40 percent. The customer is as happy as we are,” said Kelly. “Now we’ve incorporated what we learned during the beta site evaluation to create Marathon + GES 2.0, the commercially available version of this new technology.”

Marathon + GES 2.0 replaces the dedicated PLC and HMI (human machine interface) and electrical cabinet of the original GES with a single Allen-Bradley platform that controls both labeler and glue system operation.

The recipes for every container/label/adhesive combination, which are stored in the PLC’s memory, control both the labeler and the glue system seamlessly. The system’s recipe-driven repeatability minimizes operator intervention while maximizing system performance and the quality of labeled containers.

Compared to traditional glue wheel systems, GES 2.0 eliminates glue slinging, angel hair and glue build-up on the vacuum drum and glue wires, which maximizes uptime by eliminating operator adjustments and labeler stoppages. As a closed-loop system, glue recirculation is reduced by over 90 percent, which eliminates overcooking the glue and damaging its bonding properties. With no glue pan overflows, no draining of glue tanks full of overcooked or contaminated adhesive and no glue slinging, the GES 2.0 reduces glue waste.

The streamlined design of the GES 2.0 includes three key components: extrusion tower assembly, all-metal GES vacuum drum and melt-on-demand glue tank. It is exclusively available as part of the Marathon series of labelers and can easily handle the highest speeds its host labeler is capable of achieving – up to 650 cpm with the high speed Marathon XLA and XLUA models.

GES 2.0 vacuum drums are high-precision, all-metal drums that eliminate the need for vacuum drum re-padding. The vacuum drum and extrusion tower assembly have a no-impact interface – the vacuum drum never contacts the pattern nozzle as it deposits glue on labels. This no-impact interface means the GES 2.0 vacuum drums do not experience wear like conventional vacuum drums.

B & H’s GES 2.0 effectively runs all hot melt adhesives currently used for roll-fed labeling as well as higher viscosity adhesives that will not run on glue wheel or spray glue systems. By opening the window for adhesive options, the GES 2.0 makes it possible to run adhesives with different bonding characteristics, adhesives better suited to surviving seasonal temperature and humidity swings and even less expensive adhesives. B & H is working with customers and adhesive suppliers to test and qualify adhesives never before used for roll-fed labeling.

About B & H Labeling Systems
Since introducing the first roll-fed labeling system 45 years ago, B & H Labeling Systems has been known worldwide for innovation, dependability and responsive customer service. B & H maintains its role as a dedicated labeling solutions provider by successfully developing new labelers and applications for multiple industries, and by supporting a wide range of customers and B & H labelers with parts and technical service, regardless of the age or model of the machine.
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